Mia san mia: One club, one motto

The Performance Center at Bayern’s Säbener Strasse facility, the first floor. This is where the playing and coaching staff gather for communal lunches. Every time they walk from the serving area to the dining room, they pass a 1.8 by 1.2 metre illuminated display case containing a very special poster, summarising the ideals which have evolved in the club’s 111-year history and made it what it is today. Captain Philipp Lahm and his team-mates are thus constantly reminded of the club’s defining principles and sacred values: 16 statements comprising a philosophy and mission statement for Germany’s most successful football club.

Mia san mia, we are who we are. The 16 principles, decades in the making, were enshrined in a book published in 2009 but aimed exclusively at the club’s players, permanent staff and partners. “The aim of the book was to remind our pros and staff of the essence of FC Bayern, and the traditions, power and determination to succeed embodied in the club,” chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge explained.

In the graphic above, fcbayern.de presents the 16 statements which have guided and shaped the club from its humble origins to the globally-renowned organisation of today:

We are one club, we are ambassadors, we are role models, we are tradition, we are innovation, we are self-belief, we are diversity, we are football, we are respect, we are joy, we are loyal, we are partners, we are home-loving, we are dynamic, we are responsibility, we are family. Mia san mia, we are who we are – we are FC Bayern!